T-Birds fall in straight sets at MRU

MRU women’s volleyball earned their third consecutive three set win after defeating the UBC Thunderbirds in straight-sets, 25-22, 25-22, 25-22 in their Saturday night showdown. This win extends the Cougars winning streak to five consecutive games. 

The Thunderbirds were aggressive out the gate after Mount Royal’s three set win last night, and put up a stronger offence throughout the first set than was displayed yesterday. 

Quinn Pelland stepped up early for MRU, with repeated jousts and battles at the net against the UBC left side, Cara Kovacs. 

Dholi Thokbuom made an entrance, throwing down a kill almost instantly after subbing into the game. The momentum shifted and UBC was forced to take both time outs, only three points apart. British Columbia couldn’t seem to keep the ball in bounds against increased Cougar pressure. 

Kayla Oxland made the recovery for UBC, with a kill to bring back the energy, but the Cougars didn’t allow the T-Birds to heat up with Thokbuom claiming another kill right after to keep the swing in their favour. 

MRU went up to lead 22-13 before UBC reset and got back into position.

Kylee Glanville was unstoppable, with four consecutive kills for UBC, two coming from a quick right side attack straight down the line. Her third and fourth points came after finding a weak spot in MRUs block. She was the driver behind a nine point run and impressive comeback. 

Madison Marshall made a miracle kill to end the set with so much power the dig bounced the length off the gym and out of bounds back on MRU’s side.

The second set belonged to Thokbuom and Osczwvski. Thokbuom in the middle and Osczevski’s presence on defence were a problem for UBC. There was a very similar look to the first set, with MRU holding a strong lead for the majority of play before a massive gain from the T-Birds, closing the gap. 

The Cougars still came out on top, claiming the set 25-22 and bringing their lead to two. 

UBC and MRU were trading point for point from the start of the third set. It wasn’t long before the Thunderbirds carved out a small lead over the Cougars and were able to hold that lead for the majority of the game. MRU started to close the gap going into the final few points, down by two sitting 20-18, forcing UBC into timeout. 

Mount Royal didn’t let the time out shift momentum, and propelled themselves forward. They overtook the lead at 22-21 and forced a second UBC timeout. 

Haley Roe sent a C-ball hard just out of reach of Kacey Jost bringing the score 24-22 before a double block by Mya Morgan and Osczevski made the final point of the night and claimed the game.

Morgan was named MRU’s player of the game, with an unbelievable court presence and finishing the night with six kills, eight blocks, two digs and an ace. 

“It was definitely a big fight against a big team night, but it was a really great game,” said Morgan. “We are going to take this bye weekend and really rest.”

With the win the Cougars improve to 12-5 on the season while UBC falls to 14-4. The T-Birds are back on the road next weekend visiting the Calgary Dinos beginning Friday January, 28 at 6:45 pm PT.